Comfort Food

[Innkeeper]

Last night we made something we have not done in decades, be it for style, popularity, diet of one sort or another, or whatever. Took the recipe from Michael Field's "Culinary Classics and Improvisations" (1965), replacing his ten tablespoons of butter mostly with OO. Bet some of you young whipper snappers never heard of it!

TURKEY TETRAZZINI:

1/2 lb Linguine (fresh or dried)
6 tbl Olive oil
3 tbl Butter
1/2 lb Mushrooms sliced or quartered depending on size
1/4 C Flour
1 1/2 C Turkey stock or reasonable substitute, warmed
1 Egg yolk
1/2 C Heavy cream
1 tbl Oloroso Sherry or reasonable substitute
3 C Cooked turkey in 1/2 - 1 inch cubes
1/4 C Grated Romano or Parmesan mixed with
2 tbl Fresh breadcrumbs
Salt
White peppermill
Paprika

1 1/2 - 2 qt Baking dish or Au Gratin dish

Cook pasta al dente. Drain and toss with two forks to rid it of all water. Toss in baking dish with two tablespoons of OO, salt and white pepper. In an eight to ten inch saute pan, melt a tablespoon of butter in two tablespoons of OO. Saute mushrooms till soft but not brown. Remove them to small bowl. Add another tablespoon of butter with two more of OO. When butter subsides whisk in flour. Off the heat add warm stock. Bring to boil and simmer for five minutes. Whisk egg yolk and cream together. Add a ladle of sauce to it, whisk well, and add cream into sauce. Warm through. Off heat season with wine, salt, and white pepper. Mix in turkey and mushrooms. Stir all together well. Scrape on top of the pasta. Sprinkle with cheese - breadcrumb mixture and paprika. Dot with remaining tablespoon of butter. Bake in a 350 degree oven for forty five minutes.

Served with 1998 Antinori, Santa Cristina, Sangiovese. They went very well together, and, yes Foodie, we realize this is low acid dish. Maybe we just like acidic wine with everything.




[This message has been edited by Innkeeper (edited 12-02-2001).]

[Thomas]

It's also a high fat dish, which is why the high-acid wine should do well with it--cuts right through.

By the way IK, your doctor called to ask me if I have been a bad influence on you and your cholesterol. I told him "no matter, the red wine offset that artery-buster meal." Right?

And yes, I am old enough to have heard both of the dish and the book--geez, that's old!

[winedope]

not really old- I'm familiar with both also and I certainly don't consider myself old ! WD

[This message has been edited by winedope (edited 12-01-2001).]

[cpurvis]

IK, read your post on Monday. Been years since I'd had the dish as well. Had half a bottle of sangiovese left from the previous night, so used your recipe & the pairing was very nice. Thanks.

cp

[Bucko]

Doing food confessions, I used to LOVE Swanson's Turkey Pot Pies. I'm sure they were loaded with fat but they were good.....

[Thomas]

Yuck! Bucko, do you know what that stuff did your brain cells? How could you know? It works on cognizance functioning...

[hotwine]

Maybe so, but I used to love 'em, too. Never could find a wine that went well with them, so I just defaulted to suds. The modern variety, from Healthy Choice ("Turkey Divan", I think they call it) just doesn't have the flavor of the old Swanson's, although it's helped by a grassy SB.

[Bucko]

Your basic assumption is flawed in that it assumes brain cells were present to be effected....